As you may be aware, nDreams (Fracked, Phantom: Covert Ops) launched a publishing arm for third-party developers in 2021. The first studio to be accepted was Purple Yonder with its relaxing city builder Little Cities. Today, the teams have announced that Little Cities is now due to launch next month.
As the name suggests, Little Cities is all about building your own mini-metropolis, filled with homes, shops, factories, hospitals, police stations, power plants and much more; everything a bustling city needs. Rather than giving you one massive stretch of green land to build upon, Little Cities has each of its levels built around an archipelago, giving you a variety of environmental components to build around.
The first area revealed was a fairly flat set of islands with a couple of hills to showcase how terrain can affect mechanics like WiFi. Today’s announcement has unveiled several more themed locations including a desert island and one with a giant volcano in the middle. Each with its own hazards, the desert features sandstorms that can be held back by planting trees. Whilst the volcano – as you’ve probably guessed – brings the risk of eruptions. The upside is that geothermal vents can power cities.
New islands also mean new buildings. Why not add a nice thermal spa and water park to your volcanic island city, or an aquarium and a stadium on those tropical islands. And these are just the islands Purple Yonder has teased, yet to reveal how many variations Little Cities has to offer.
City building might sound like a stressful endeavour, trying to earn money to expand and build new areas all whilst keeping the residents happy but Little Cities is very much a calm and relaxing experience. You can read gmw3’s initial preview which said: “For such an early demo ahead of a Spring 2022 launch for Oculus Quest, Little Cities was a pleasing delight.”
Purple Yonder and nDreams will release Little Cities exclusively for Meta Quest 1 & 2 on 21st April 2022. Take a look at the new trailer below and for further updates, keep reading gmw3.
Among Us VR and Cities: VR will be present at the Meta Gaming Showcase next month.
The showcase is the second of its kind, providing the latest looks at titles coming to Quest. As announced yesterday, it will begin at 10am PT on April 20, hosted by Oculus Studio Executive Producer Ruth Bram.
Yesterday we speculated on what we might see at the showcase, including potential updates on GTA: San Andreas, Vertigo Games, Stress Level Zero, Splinter Cell/Assassin’s Creed and Among Us VR.
heads up Crewmates, we're gonna be in the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase! april 20 new bean footage no Impostors allowed
Well, it looks like we’ll be getting our wish for at least one of those — the Among Us VR Twitter account confirmed the game will appear in the upcoming showcase, featuring some new footage. Hopefully we’ll also learn a little about a possible release date for the game, too.
We also got confirmation that Cities: VR, the spin-off of the popular Skylines game, will be at the show. Developer Fast Travel pointed out that you won’t want to miss the event. Could this be where we learn about the spring release date for the Quest 2 exclusive?
For now, those are the only developers and publishers we’ve heard from — the rest of the showcase remains wrapped under a blanket of mystery. We should also expect a bit of the unexpected as well — Meta confirmed yesterday that alongside updates on previously-announced titles, we’re also in store for some brand new game announcements.
It won’t be the only VR showcase this year either — the UploadVR Showcase is back this June. Keep an eye out for more details soon.
Just as the Game Developers Conference (GDC) got underway in San Francisco last week, French haptic specialist Actronika launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for its first consumer-focused device, a haptic vest called the Skinetic. Happily, the vest was at GDC 2022 and gmw3 got a taster of this early in production device; leaving the demonstration quite impressed.
Now, haptic vests are nothing new when it comes to virtual reality (VR) immersion, the most well-known being bHaptics’ range of devices. It’s a niche market yet one that could very well benefit from a couple of competitors and Skinetic could very well be the vest to do that; in the long run.
GDC 2022 – Skinetic. Image credit: gmw3
XS to XXL, it should fit
Whenever I try on any peripheral designed for the body I’m always slightly hesitant because I’m a large guy. The last thing you want is for the product to either not fit around my frame or be unable to fasten, thus reducing the optimal haptic effect or making the whole endeavour null and void. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. The Skinetic prototype fitted perfectly thanks to the easily adjustable side and shoulder straps.
It was very comfortable in fact, even with the protruding cable that ran down my back to the PC. This Actronika assures me is only for this prototype, with the final production version being fully wireless, having in-built WiFi5 tech.
Getting the vibe on
The Skinetic haptic vest has 20 actuators across the front and back panels, using Actronika’s patented voice-coil motors (VCM). What this provide was some excellent variance in feedback, from subtle environmental changes to full-on getting shot in the chest.
The first testing bench was a basic simulator environment where drones would fly out, circle around and shoot a number of different guns. Single-shot pistols hit with a satisfying thud, and I kept turning around to dynamically vary the placement between kidney shots to higher shoulder hits. Then in came the machinegun wielding drone, peppering me with projectiles that didn’t have the same force yet the actuators kept up nicely with the rapid-fire.
By far my favourite of the gun tests was the laser beam. You always see this in movies and videogames cutting through enemies, leaving a charred hole in its wake. Well, that’s essentially what the Skinetic was reproducing here. The haptics began building upon the front, gradually getting more intense whilst the back very slowly started to build in effect, as the virtual laser beam cut through me. Quite the unusual experience and the closest I’ll ever get to being run through with a lightsaber.
After that Actronika unleashed environmental effects that were far more full-body. Rain dabbled across my chest and down my back, whilst a sudden surge of fire seemed to activate all the actuators at once, almost in a nice massaging rhythm. The climax of this sequence was the nuclear blast where a wave of rumbling from front to back rippled across my torso. These larger explosions and effects are dramatic and in the right scene probably highly effective, yet for me, in this test, it was the more precise feedback that had the greatest impact.
Guns at the ready
This was all passive testing, simply stand there and take the impacts. Really what I wanted was some in-game action to demo the Skinetic on. And Actronicka provided in the form of a mode for Half-Life: Alyx. In a small sandbox area, I was treated to all the guns, being able to drop in enemies like the Combine soldiers, the odd headcrab or two and that annoying electric dog thing.
Low and behold, this experience was far more satisfying, taking a few rounds from the Combine gave a suitable short, sharp kick from the vest. It’s the only time I’ve ever encouraged the Combine to shoot at me, it gives the false sense that you’re wearing protective body armour.
A movie to move you
Actronika might be targeting gamers and VR players with the Skinetic – it was demoed with a Valve Index after all – yet the company doesn’t just see it being used in that regard. To complete the demonstration the team had married the vest up with a short scene from Avatar, with the idea that one day you could walk into a 4D cinema and put one of these on.
It was the scene where Jake, now controlling his new blue body encounters some of the local wildlife, first standing his ground against the giant rhino-like creature before that big, black, six-legged cat appears. As he runs through the jungle the vest provides that extra emphasis on each step, fall and scramble to safety. Having seen the movie several times, those additional haptics do provide extra depth to the spectacle.
Adding some skin to VR
I certainly wasn’t disappointed by the Skinetic haptic vest, as it delivered the kind of feedback I expect from this type of device. The actuators had enough power in them to really deliver a forceful response to input like gunfire, shooting games being one genre that truly benefits from haptics – you know if you get shot in the back for one thing.
However, this isn’t a final product and Actronika still has a long way to go to complete that Kickstarter. The other unknown is compatibility, having a technically awesome vest is one thing, having the software support from developers is another issue entirely. Some support is already there like the Half-Life: Alyx mod but much more is needed.
Skinetic is technically on point and it’s not due to be released until 2023, so gmw3 can’t wait to see how the vest is refined further.
There might be lots of talk about the metaverse at the moment but one company that’s been walking its own path between the real and virtual is Tender Claws with its theatrical app The Under Presents. Originally having live actors play some of the character roles for a limited time, the studio has confirmed they’ll be returning this Friday.
While videogames like Dr. Crumb’s School for Disobedient Pets have utilised live performers to engage with players, Tender Claws’ The Under Presents was the first to offer this kind of experience to the public. If you missed it the first time around now there’s a chance to immerse yourself in live VR theatre, whilst those that did get to experience performances such as The Under Presents: Tempest will be able to enjoy new stories and mini-events.
Just like before, The Under Presents won’t be filled with live actors all the time, blending pre-recorded performances with live roving actors appearing from time to time. This means you can have a different experience each time you visit, enjoyed either in single-player or with the option to connect remotely with other players.
For this new run, many of The Under Presents’ original cast members return including Brandon Bales, Michael Bates, Karlie Blair, Sophie Cooper, James Cowan, Whitton Frank, Genevieve Flati, Stephanie Hyden, and many more.
The Under Presents started out as a rather surreal virtual theatre where you could meet these actors or players in one large hub area before beginning a solo campaign called Timeboat! This narrative piece is set on The Aickman, a doomed research vessel trapped in Arctic ice. Using time manipulation players have to save the characters and unravel the mysteries of the ship. This was expanded upon with The Under Presents: Tempest, a multiplayer performance of Shakespeare’s The Tempest.
In addition to the live actors returning, Tender Claws has announced a new merch store for those that love a bit of official swag.
Step into The Under Presents from 1st April to encounter the performers for a limited time – Tender Claws hasn’t indicated how long this will be. For further updates on the latest innovative use cases of VR, keep reading gmw3.
Virtual reality (VR) games don’t often have central characters you can connect with as, for the most part, you are that character. But every so often a developer tries just that, Polyarc’s Moss, for example, Ghost Giant or Astro Bot Rescue Mission. This connection with a virtual character, where you cooperatively work together to form a bond is key to Japanese studio Amata K.K’s work, from the brutal escape room title Last Labyrinth to the studios’ latest project; The Tale of Onogoro. This time around there’s no blood and gore, just a chained high priestess and some big ol’ monsters to fight.
To begin with, The Tale of Onogoro has the feel and presence of an adventure RPG, promising and engaging story, big boss fights and some rather magical weaponry. And it does have those elements yet the package is very different, this is a puzzle experience through and through, with action elements to add some pace and drama to the proceedings.
If you like Japanese narratives then this is quintessentially traditional, you play the hero, there’s a damsel in distress and, of course, you’ve got the old friend who’s betrayed you turning into the villain of the piece. Where things take a more unusual turn is in your relationship with this heroine, Haru, a priestess who has summoned you from another realm to aid her due to the fact that she’s attached to a massive rock. Yes, queue up those outdated ball and chain jokes because that is literally one of the core mechanics in Onogoro. Haru’s actually more of a warrior priestess as she fights giant creatures called Kami but because of the betrayal, she and the Quelling Stone are now best of friends thanks to a chain around her ankle. Thus you need to pick her up and carry her everywhere.
Is this a fun mechanic? Umm, not by the end of the game as she continually moans that you’re movements are too fast and to be careful not to drop her. To begin with, though, it’s one of the main ways the videogame builds that partnership between you both, as you’re both useless without each other. You need to defeat five of these Kami to succeed and she has the knowledge to do so – and no, you can’t throw the Quelling Stone at the giant monsters sacrificing Haru. In fact, there’s no ability to throw.
You’re in Haru’s world in spectral form so all of your interactions are confined to using the Celestial Weapons, two hip-mounted guns that can remotely pick up the stone as well as pull in elemental energy that can flip switches or be used to shoot enemies. The only other interaction you can have in the world is with Haru, holding hands to regain energy or to answer a question by nodding or shaking your head.
So when it comes to interactivity The Tale of Onogoro isn’t exactly dripping stuff to play with. The focus is on puzzle solving, with no exploratory deviation required. To begin with, Onogoro is a very slow starter, like trying to warm up on a cold day. Haru provides all of the background narrative, in-game rather than annoying, immersion-breaking cut scenes. This means she talks a lot, so much so that there are points where I just wanted to get on with things rather than stand there listening for another two minutes.
The puzzle mechanics are wonderfully simple, colour-code elements with yellow acting as earth, green for wind and red for fire. You extract the magic from a corresponding stone to then shoot foes or hit a switch, that’s it in a nutshell. This isn’t playschool though, the depth comes from mixing all these up with the environment to set things on fire, carefully navigate balls through the skies and trying to keep your cool when Haru gets continually shot.
Amata K.K. has managed to fit a massive amount of puzzle variety into The Tale of Onogoro making for a pleasant, engaging puzzler. There were certainly moments where it did get a bit mundane, saved by the inclusion of those boss battles. Because of the way the Celestial Weapons work these action sequences are more like giant puzzles themselves, just with the added danger that you could die. These scenarios require even greater management of your and Haru’s positioning, because if either of you both takes too much damage then it’s over, doesn’t matter how far away from you she is.
Should that happen then the only way to heal is to grab both of her hands, slowly recharging the health meter. This is quite possibly the most annoying and engaging part of the entire videogame. It’s a powerful moment between you both, grabbing each other’s hand to save yourselves. But, and there’s always a but, trying to do this mid-battle quite often not attaching the first time and thus dying, does ruin that emotional moment.
If you like a challenge then don’t expect a hard slog from The Tale of Onogoro. The difficulty does gradually increase yet there’s isn’t a sudden steep arc, everything is fairly self-explanatory and at no point did I get stuck, only dying a couple of times on the last boss due to that hand-holding debacle. So you should expect to complete Onogoro for the first time in around five hours without too much trouble.
What the developer has cleverly done is include some much-needed replay and speedrunner mechanics to add further value to the whole experience. In a very arcade fashion, the levels are split into chapters that are timed with a three-star score awarded at the end. Two Nexus Points are also hidden in each area for those completionists. Just enough that you might be tempted to blitz that awkward area once more.
The Tale of Onogoro really is a mixed bag of tricks, with some clever yet not too tricky puzzling in addition to the epic boss encounters to get the energy pumping. It would’ve been nice if Haru wasn’t so dependent on you, you can’t venture too far away and for someone who was a badass Kami fighting priestess, she really is demoted. I’d have liked the puzzles to have been a little more outlandish considering the setting, there are no hints and I never felt like any were required. Whilst not as striking as Last Labyrinth, The Tale of Onogoro definitely feels like Amata K.K. settling into a solid VR rhythm.
The second annual Meta Quest Gaming Showcase will take place on April 20, featuring updates and new game announcements for the Quest platform.
The showcase will begin at 10am PT, hosted Ruth Bram, Executive Producer at Oculus Studios. Meta says the showcase will feature “announcements, gameplay first-looks, updates on games coming in the next year, and a whole lot of surprises.”
Here’s hoping for news on all of the above and more. Last year’s show gave us an in-depth look at Resident Evil 4 VR and saw the announcement of Carve Snowboarding, though also largely focused on updates for games that are already available. You can tune in to the Meta Quest Gaming Showcase at 10am PT on April 20 on Facebook, YouTube, Twitch and Oculus TV. Of course, it won’t be the only VR gaming showcase this year – we’ll be back with the Upload VR Showcase in June. More details soon!
This weekend, our team jumped into this year’s first Metaverse Fashion Week — a four-day event held inside popular blockchain-powered platform Decentraland. Over the course of the event, 60 brands showcased new clothing collections through a series of digital runway shows, after-parties, pop-up shops and more. Players were even given the opportunity to try on digital wearables using their avatars.
Let’s highlight what we experienced in this year’s Metaverse Fashion Week — including some pros, cons and highlights about the overall experience. We’ll also cover what the success of the event might spell for the fashion industry and future virtual events.
In a nutshell
In all, Metaverse Fashion Week was a great way for various brands to showcase new designs, experience greater exposure and explore new ways to combine both physical and digital wearables into singular purchases.
Other brands, such as Tommy Hilfiger, showcased physical products as tokenised NFTs — meaning that users who purchased any wearables in the metaverse could also redeem corresponding physical items inside actual, real-world storefronts. This new convergence of physical and digital purchasing was enabled by the technology of Boson Protocol — a company that’s currently looking to create a new trading ecosystem for Web3 through its decentralised infrastructure.
Just like real-world fashion events, Metaverse Fashion Week was also brought to life by celebrity attendees and online performances. For example, future-savvy, electronic artist Grimes closed the virtual display of digital fashion brand Auroboros with her own DJ set — all with her avatar dressed in a custom bodysuit wearable.
To make purchases inside the event, users simply had to load their Ethereum wallets. However, the event was free for all to attend — with those not coming equipped with a wallet still able to attend as a guest.
Some of the good and bad
Those who reported attending Metaverse Fashion Week have claimed that connecting their wallets was generally easy and seamless. Each area was also visually appealing and engaging — with digital wearables, promotional visuals and other displays programmatically inserted into each space.
One of the biggest caveats reported by several attendees was the lack of proper graphics support. We’re not the only ones who experienced regular glitching and lagging throughout our time inside the event — with the display sometimes bugging out each time we switched rooms or locations. With that being said, however, better motion tracking, network advances and improvements in latency should allow us to see refinements made in other metaverse events down the road.
Also, due to the surplus of levels and obstacles inside the event spaces (such as stairs, lifts and ramps), we also noted the potential for gamification that the creators of MVFW missed the mark on a little. Seeing fashion brands explore new ways to offer products has been exciting — but it would also be nice to see Decentraland provide players with better incentive structures in future events of a similar nature.
Is this the start of a metaverse event boom?
Whether Metaverse Fashion Week was easy to traverse or not, one thing is clear: that it will likely be the first of many community events inside the metaverse, let alone inside the fashion world. Unlike the case with real-life fashion weeks, planning an event inside of a digital ecosystem has enabled a new way for anyone to attend — regardless of their status, association or location.
When commenting on making Decentraland a more inclusive and accessible platform, Sam Hamilton, Decentraland Foundation’s creative director, has aptly described it as a “virtual social world for anyone, anywhere.” Moreover, he’s commented on MVFW’s potential as a game-changer for the fashion universe, claiming that it has “levelled up the playing field for the world of fashion and decreased the limitations.”
As was the case in the early days of Web1 and Web2, it will take some time for user experiences to improve in Web3. However, the potential for more accessible, profitable and innovative opportunities has surely been illuminated by the model of Metaverse Fashion Week — and if they haven’t already, now is a great time for brands to start paying better attention to what they can do in the metaverse.
Check out our walkthrough video
If you didn’t make it to this year’s Metaverse Fashion Week, we put together this video covering our walkthrough inside the event. Check it out here:
For more updates on future Web3 and gaming events, be sure to keep reading gmw3.
The next major addition to VR music game Unplugged will introduce a new instrument in the form of an air… triangle.
Yes, a triangle. The little metal thing you hit.
Vertigo Games and Anotherway today announced that the instrument will arrive “early next month”. Now which annual occasion of pranks and jokes also takes place around that time? Get a look at the complex (ish) new instrument in the video above.
The triangle still uses hand tracking, with players dangling the kit with one hand and tapping it with the baton in the other. It’s compatible with a particularly energetic song, too.
It’s safe to say this isn’t exactly the kind of content we expected for Unplugged post-launch, but the game has already added a new Steel Panther song along with passthrough support for Quest players, and Vertigo confirmed to us that it was looking into the possibility of more DLC tracks around the game’s launch last year.
We gave the Quest version of the app our Best Quest Game prize at our 2021 awards a few months back, citing the thrilling air guitar mechanics that we only hope to see improve with future versions of hand-tracking support. “Anotherway and Vertigo have found a concept and gameplay loop that can only improve with time — it’s just a matter of providing an experience that matches the level of technology on offer at each step of the way,” we said in our review. “Don’t let that deter you from playing Unplugged now though — it’s more than worth trying.”
PSVR 2 has been announced and is hopefully coming soon, but what about PSVR 2 games?
Note: This article was originally published on January 6 and has since been updated.
We’ve got a full rundown of all announced and rumored PSVR 2 games to keep track of. We’ll be keeping this list up to date, so check back often.
Harnessing the power of the PS5, PSVR 2 will be capable of much more ambitious games than the original headset, which ran on the PS4. But with the device only just announced, Sony is playing its cards close to its chest when it comes to the software library. So far we have only a handful of fully announced PSVR 2 games, but there are plenty of other titles that are rumored or hinted at to talk about too. This list includes rumored PSVR 2 games and also titles that appear on both PS4 and PS5 but have PSVR support for the latter, making them likely targets for PSVR 2 too.
The first game Sony itself has officially announced for PSVR 2, Horizon Call of the Wild is a spin-off of the popular open-world series. You’ve likely already played Horizon Zero Dawn, in which protagonist Aloy learned about the near-extinction of humanity and the rise of dinosaur-like machines, and the sequel, Forbidden West, is coming to PS4 and PS5 soon.
Call of the Wild is an all-new entry in which you play as a new character (though you will meet Aloy) and is developed by one of Sony’s newly-acquired studios, Firesprite. More details are yet to be revealed but you can see the first gameplay above and we’re hopeful that this will be a PSVR 2 launch title, too.
Firmament
Myst developer Cyan World’s latest game was originally planned to come to PSVR. But the studio recently confirmed that it’s stopping work on that version of the game and will instead bring it to PSVR 2. It’s clear to see why the PSVR version might have been an issue – Firmament looks like an absolutely gorgeous game and another interesting addition to the adventure genre. It was actually announced all the way back in 2018 but the full release is planned for 2022 with PSVR 2 support arriving when the headset is ready for launch.
Unannounced Coatsink Game
Esper, Shadow Point and Jurassic World Aftermath developer Coatsink is confirmed to be working on a launch title for PSVR 2. Parent company Thunderful confirmed as much in a recent financial report. Exactly what the team is working on is unclear – it could be a port of one of its older VR titles, or it could be something brand new. Aftermath was its most recent VR effort, but it’s unclear if that game is fully exclusive to Quest or could come to other platforms.
Unannounced nDreams Games
In a recent funding announcement, UK-based nDreams confirmed that it’s working on multiple projects for PSVR 2. The studio has a long history with VR, but is best known for its 2020 stealth action VR, Phantom: Covert Ops, in which players infiltrated hostile territory in a kyack, and last year’s blockbuster PSVR shooter, Fracked. There’s no word yet on what these new projects will be, but nDreams now consists of three studios making VR content, and we’d gladly replay Fracked on new hardware.
Runner
Horizon might be the first game Sony announced for PSVR 2, but Runner developer Truant Pixel announced its intention to release on the platform nearly a year before that. This is an anime-inspired biking game in which you speed down futuristic highways fending off enemies with dual-wielding weapons. It’s got gorgeously animated cutscenes and is also expected to launch on Quest 2 and PC VR. Perhaps not a raw display of PSVR 2’s power, then, but a good indication of what you can expect from indie development on the headset.
Low-Fi
The long-anticipated sci-fi title from Iris VR has been promising to join the line-up of PSVR 2 games for years now. Low-Fi is designed to be a futuristic life-simulator inspired by the likes of Blade Runner in which players can make their own choices about how to proceed. It’s been in early access on Itch for a few years, with the developer continuing to bolt on new features. Hopefully 2022 will see the launch of the full version of the game on PSVR 2.
Samurai Slaughter House
Another indie studio that’s been very quick to confirm it’ll join the list of PSVR 2 games, Samurai Slaughter House is a bloody melee combat game with a black and white art style and physics-based fighting. The game’s also planned for PC VR and Quest 2.
PSVR 2 Games: Rumored Games
These are possible PSVR 2 games that developers have either hinted at or seem very likely to come to the platform.
Resident Evil 8
Capcom’s staple horror series returned with another mainline entry in 2021. Resident Evil 8 returned to the first-person camera perspective first seen in 2017’s PSVR-supported Resident Evil 7. Reports that correctly revealed the game’s setting and mechanics ahead of launch also claimed that Capcom was implementing VR support into the title at one point in time. Is it possible that implementation was put on pause until PSVR 2 was out? We certainly hope so.
Gran Turismo 7
PS4’s Gran Turismo Sport featured bare-bones support for PSVR. The actual experience was incredibly polished, but it only let you race against one other AI opponent or perfect your lap times. Series creator Kazunori Yamauchi himself expressed frustration with the performance needed for a good VR experience and once said he expected that to improve in the next-generation of consoles. More recently, he cryptically noted that he couldn’t talk about possible VR support for Gran Turismo 7 “yet”. All things considered, this seems like a solid bet to become a full PSVR 2 game in the future.
Farpoint 2
Farpoint became one of PSVR’s most popular shooters thanks to its reliance on the excellent rifle-shaped Aim Controller. The game had a full single-player campaign and a fun — if limited — multiplayer option, sending players to an alien world to fight spider-like monsters. Developer Impulse Gear recently put out another great shooter named Larcenauts for Quest and PC VR. Around that time, we asked the studio’s Greg Koreman about a possible return to the series.
He told us: “We definitely don’t have anything to announce at the moment but that is our roots and we’re very happy with what we did on Farpoint. And I think you look at that game and that universe and there’s absolutely a lot more to explore there.” Yep, it sounds like a sequel is very possiblyy one of the upcoming PSVR 2 games.
Half-Life: Alyx
What must be one of the most hoped-for PSVR 2 games is a port of Valve’s stunning return to its flagship franchise from 2020. Alyx absolutely delivered on the AAA VR dream with a long, highly-polished campaign that really capitalized on the platform. Before launch in 2019, Valve’s Greg Coomer had this to say to PushSquare on the possibility of a PSVR port for the game: “We believe Sony’s VR platform has been a huge success for the medium, and we assume that lots of Sony customers would love to experience this new chapter of Half-Life.” Could we see Alyx arrive on PSVR 2 with this in mind?
PSVR 2 Games: Cross-Gen Games With PSVR 1 Support
There are games that are on both PS4 and PS5 already and have PSVR support on PS4, thus making them likely candidates for PS5 games in the future.
Hitman 3
Arguably the last truly huge PSVR release, Hitman 3 featured timed-exclusive support for the headset when it launched in January 2021. Not only could you play the entire game in first-person using the DualShock 4’s motion controls, but you could import the campaigns from Hitman 1 and 2 and play them there too. This January the timed-exclusivity window will be up and the game’s getting VR support on PC, too, with two-handed motion controls. It’s a very good indication that, when PSVR 2 drops, the PS5 version of Hitman 3 could well add in support.
Resident Evil 7
Resident Evil 7 is due to get a PS5 remaster later in 2022. It will include ray tracing support, improved framerates and integration with DualSense’s’ haptic feedback and resistence triggers. There’s been no confirmation of PSVR 2 support thus far but, given this remains one of the best games on the original headset, we’ll keep our fingers crossed. If PSVR 2 gets Resident Evil 7 and 8? We’ll be very lucky indeed.
No Man’s Sky
Hello Games’ celebrated sci-fi epic has had VR support on PS4 and PC for years now and maintained a consistent player base. In fact, the game even supports upgraded visuals for PSVR on PS5, giving players an early taste of the visual clarity they can expect for PSVR 2 games. But we’re fully expecting the native PS5 version of the game to get full support for Sony’s new headset when it finally launches. There’ll be hundreds of hours of space exploration just waiting for you. It’s an exciting thought.
The Persistence
Sony bought Horizon Call of the Mountain developer Firesprite in 2021, but the Liverpool, UK-based team had been showing support for PSVR long before that. It created the fantastic timed-exclusive, The Persistence, first for PSVR. It’s a thrilling, procedurally generated survival horror game that established palpable atmosphere. The Persistence eventually found its way to other headsets and flatscreen platforms including PS5. Once the new headset’s released, it’s a solid bet that this will be one of the new PSVR 2 games we can enjoy on the device.
Kona
Kona is something of an oddity. It’s a first-person investigation game set in snowy Northern Canada. You look into strange events that have left a small town deserted and survive the blizzard. The PS4 and PC versions of the game got premium VR DLC that let you play the entire experience with a headset. A PS5 version arrived somewhat out of the blue with a free upgrade. Hopefully we’ll see this version also get PSVR 2 support once the headset arrives.
And that’s the current list of confirmed and rumored PSVR 2 games! What are you looking forward to? Are there any other titles you’re hoping get announced? Let us know in the comments below!
Live actors are returning to Tender Claws’ experience The Under Presents for a limited run starting from April 1.
The Under Presents launched in late 2019, as a wholly unique VR experience that merged single player, multiplayer, social VR and live theater together into one surreal package. There’s a whole single player campaign to work through, but there’s also a multiplayer and social side to the experience that blends pre-recorded and live segments together and is ever-changing.
Three years on from release, many of the original cast members are returning for a “limited engagement” of new live performances in The Under Presents. From April 1, players will be able to view these new performances that feature “new story beats and mini events to explore.”
Take note – Live performers are returning to The Under Presents starting April 1st! Come witness the emergence of friends, old and new, from the sands of time! pic.twitter.com/AQuDi1Ubyi
You can see a glimpse of what to expect in the video embedded above, tweeted by Tender Claws, showing a giant (and presumably live) skeleton bend down to pick up an item and interact with players.
Tender Claws is known as a studio that pushes the boundaries of VR and examines the medium through a surrealist, critical lens across varied types of experiences. Its most recent release, Virtual Virtual Reality 2, was a very different project that was equally ambitious as The Under Presents, but not quite as successful in its execution.
Will you be returning to The Under Presents for new live performances? Let us know what you think in the comments.
Each fortnight we will be taking a look at some of the upcoming videogames, demos and unique experiences available through Oculus App Lab for the Meta Quest headsets. Many of these games come in varying states of completion, so each title is subject to change.
In this edition, we look at chess, ninjas and skating.
Chess VR
Have you ever wanted to play chess in a vast medieval castle? Against a knight in full armour? Me neither, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t happen. Though if you answered yes to those above questions, you’re going to want to download Chess VR immediately, because it has castles, knights and, obviously, Chess.
There isn’t a great deal to say beyond the above because it’s chess, what more needs saying. However, scratch beneath the surface and there’s a surprising depth to be found. Away from the standard chess against a CPU opponent, you can choose to play online or complete puzzle boards. The latter sets up a board mid-game and requires you to win, usually from a disadvantageous position. As a complete chess noob, I merely walked myself into checkmate all the time and watched as the CPU battered me, but your results may vary.
Each match is played in a grand and wonderfully rendered environment that feels both immersive and grandiose. There’s enough depth here at this early stage of development and it is a must for anyone seeking a great chess game with a sense of escapism.
Void Ninja
Void Ninja shares a lot with old school ‘on-rails’ shooters, minus the guns. Played in first-person view, you’re a cyber ninja who auto-moves through The Matrix-inspired environments, drenched in digital glitches. It’s an impressive visual playground that leans heavily into sci-fi trappings. With no story available, it’s hard to parse what we’re actually exploring, but it leaves a lot to your imagination.
Using a static standing position, Void Ninja relies on hand movements to interact with the environments and effectively move within the space. Sweeping a hand side-to-side turns corners, holding the grips enables a wall run. This being a game about ninja escapades, there’s plenty of fighting. Reaching up to your shoulder pulls out a katana to eliminate bots throughout the levels. On the surface, everything feels great, but there are a few hiccups.
Personally, I was a bit torn on Void Ninja overall. It looks lovely, it sounds great and the mix of combat and parkour works really well. However, some movement options are severely lacking; turning a corner by waving your hand is spotty and there were too many times I fell off the platforms. Leaning left and right forces the ninja to sidestep and ducking takes care of obstacles, but neither of these a viable for seated players.
There’s a lot of potential here, particularly with such striking visuals and a level editor available to all players who fancy creating new areas.
District M
District M is a colourful punch in the eye attached to a pair of rollerblades. Here, you control a skater making their way through District M; swinging your arms side-to-side moves the skater, while buttons control jumping and other actions. The demo on offer is limited but gives a great view of what’s to come.
At its core, District M is a rhythm game, rewarding a score for picking up collectables that sway back and forth with the melody in the soundtrack, and jumps must be performed on the beat. The tutorial guides you through the absolute basics, but a ‘sneak peek’ at a future level shows off much more depth, with drifting, boosting and longer jumps through speed-boost hoops.
The developer has added a nice touch with a first-person view available, otherwise, the game controls from a following camera, which is perfect for those who still get a bit of motion sickness. What’s perhaps most striking is the audio-visual package on the whole; huge bold objects in all kinds of colours, music that is endearingly toe-tapping. District M has a wonderful carnival atmosphere that clicks right away.
Since I first tried the game a week ago, the developer has updated the game to include the ‘sneak peek’ so it seems clear development is going well. District M is shaping up to be an infectiously fun ride.
For the past few years, Quantum Story has built its XR platform around immersive storytelling, bringing books to life using the power of virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR). Today, the company has announced a collaboration with Hasbro, entering a multi-year licensing agreement that’ll include the My Little Pony, Transformers and Clue franchises.
Image credit: Quantum Story Company, Inc.
This publishing collaboration’s first product will be My Little Pony: Virtual Magic based upon Hasbro’s film, My Little Pony, A New Generation. Utilising Quantum Story’s platform which combines mobile devices and XR technology, My Little Pony: Virtual Magic will feature PortalPoints that reward readers at the end of every chapter, transporting them inside the world they were just reading.
To increase the active engagement of readers, there’s a gamification system featuring an achievements panel. The more a child reads the more they’ll be rewarded, unlocking filters of characters from previous chapters, whilst parents receive notifications of how well they’re doing.
“Quantum Storey is excited to team up with Hasbro to add an entirely new dimension of interaction that will inspire young fans seeking a deeper connection with their favourite characters,” said Quantum Storey CEO and Founder J.M. Haines in a statement. “and to kick off this collaboration, we are introducing the world’s first Quantum Movie Novel, My Little Pony: Virtual Magic, based on Hasbro’s major hit film, My Little Pony: A New Generation.”
“We are thrilled to collaborate with Quantum Storey to offer readers new and exciting ways to experience our brands through their innovative XR platform,” Marissa Mansolillo, head of Content Strategy for Hasbro Publishing adds. “My Little Pony is the perfect brand to launch with as consumers are eager to dive into the world of our new generation of characters, and learn more about their origins.”
My Little Pony: Virtual Magic is currently slated to arrive this Spring, with the Transformers and Clue editions still in development. For continued updates, keep reading gmw3.
HTC Vive caused quite the reaction from the virtual reality (VR) community when it announced its own metaverse and Web3 plans in the form of Viverse and Vive Bytes respectively. To push both new platforms HTC Vive is collaborating with Ming Hwa Yuan Arts and Culture Group to bring Taiwanese opera to Viverse, in addition to releasing “The Pirate King of Formosa Global Limited Edition NFT Pack” on Vive Bytes.
The Pirate King of Formosa NFTs. Image credit Vive Bytes
A leading traditional art group in Taiwan, Ming Hwa Yuan will bring their opera into the digital realm by licensing its upcoming production Zheng ZhiLong, The Pirate King of Formosa so that HTC and Future-Digi can create the pack. Future-Digi has brought in Taiwanese comic artist Wei Tsung-Cheng to create an exclusive animated version for the NFTs.
“Viverse is a world of infinite new experiences where people, regardless of interest or age, can discover their favourite content no matter which device or platform they use,” said Joseph Lin, Vice President of the Content and Platform Department at HTC. “We are honoured to partner with Ming Hwa Yuan Arts and Culture Group, which has a history of nearly 100 years, to bring the iconic IP Zheng ZhiLong, The Pirate King of Formosa into Viverse. In addition, we have also collaborated with Future-Digi to launch The Pirate King of Formosa NFT Pack on Vive Bytes, helping preserve the art of Taiwanese opera forever on the blockchain and allowing it to be passed down from generation to generation. We will continue to work with Ming Hua Yuan to expand the Taiwanese opera metaverse.”
The Pirate King of Formosa NFT Pack will be available via the Vive Bytes platform from 10th April 2022 from 12:30 pm CST. Minted on the Polygon blockchain, 2,500 packs will be made available priced at NT$299, 2000 purchasable via credit card from Vive Bytes with 500 through redemption codes bought via 7-11 ibon channels.
A total of 23 different NFT designs will be available with each pack containing two randomly selected NFTs, at least one of which will be an NFT of Sun Tsui Feng
2 animated versions, exclusively created by Wei Tsung-Cheng, will be available
20 different appearances of the characters, as redesigned by HTC, will be available. This includes:
3 different styles of the main male character played by renowned Taiwanese opera actress Sun Tsui Feng, and 2 different styles of the main female character
4 different facial expressions of each style will be available
1 hidden version of the “King Card” featuring the guffaw of the pirate king will be available and will be limited to 250 pieces
The Pirate King of Formosa. Image credit Vive Bytes
“Taiwanese opera is not exclusive to any generation. We look forward to leveraging The Pirate King of Formosa NFT Pack NFT Pack and the upcoming virtual Taiwanese opera experiences to let younger generations learn the value of traditional arts and explore this new form of Taiwanese opera in the metaverse. We hope to get the ball rolling for traditional arts to enter the metaverse, and break new ground for the traditional art industry in Taiwan,” adds Chen Chao-Hsien, CEO of Ming Hwa Yuan Arts and Culture Group.
Additionally, a virtual theme park of The Pirate King of Formosa will be launched by Vive Connect, supporting VR and non-VR devices, with plans to link to Vive Bytes in the future. This will enable users to display their NFT collections in personal showrooms.
As HTC continues to explore new ways of combining VR and Web3 technology, gmw3 will keep you updated.
To help you in building your PlayStation 5 library, we've rounded up the best PS5 game deals that you can shop, including offers for the console's exclusives.
Owlchemy Labs announced an unexpected crossover — when Cosmonious High launches this Thursday, it will feature the red crewmate from Among Us.
A new trailer accompanied the announcement, showing the Cosmonious High students discovering the red crewmate from Among Us floating in a mysterious vent.
One of the characters declares the red crewmate “a new student” and thus begins a montage of clips showing the crewmate in various different scenes and circumstances in the game.
Beyond what’s shown in the trailer, it’s unclear how heavily the cremate will feature, but it’s an unexpected yet amusing crossover that Owlchemy Labs have coordinated. That being said, Owlchemy also says that only “savvy players” will be able to find the crewmate in the game. It seems like it’ll be a little bonus part of the game then, and not part of the main campaign or anything.
Surprise — another big VR game is launching this week! Warplanes: Battles Over Pacific will release via App Lab for Quest headsets this Thursday, March 31.
Battles Over Pacific is a WWII-focused sequel to the original Warplanes: WW1 Fighters, which sees players pilot planes in scenarios focused around key battles and moments of each world war.
The sequel was only announced a few weeks ago, so we’re slightly surprised to see it launching so suddenly on Quest, even if it is on App Lab and not the main Quest store. That being said, developers Home Net Games previously said they were “fairly confident” in a late September release, with early access available beforehand.
The Quest platforms — official store or App Lab — don’t have an early access system or a way to label games as such, hence why the series will return to App Lab for this release initially. But you can expect to see the game come to the full Quest store when the full release is ready. Likewise, the PC VR version of the game will be releasing in early access on Steam before the full launch later on.
As previously reported, the sequel will feature a similar feature set to the original title — a single-player campaign, this time set during WWII, along with PvP and co-op multiplayer modes, with a selection of 10 aircraft available across the game. We were big fans of the first game and have high hopes for this sequel.
Are you going to be picking up Warplanes: Battles Over Pacific this week? Let us know in the comments below!
British virtual reality (VR) specialist nDreams has been rapidly expanding its business of late, announcing two new studios; nDreams Studio Elevation and Studio Orbital. To continue that pace, today, nDreams has revealed a new $35 million USD investment from the Aonic Group.
nDreams will be using the investment to produce more in-house VR titles, a catalogue that includes the recent Fracked and 2020’s Phantom: Covert Ops. It’ll also expand those internal studios as well its publishing operation that’ll publish indie team Purple Yonder’s Little Cities this year.
“This investment is a pivotal moment for nDreams, and I’m delighted to have the support of Aonic, who share the same ambitious vision for the company that we do,” says Patrick O’Luanaigh, co-founder and CEO, nDreams in a statement. “As VR continues its trajectory towards becoming a truly mass-market technology, this is the rocket fuel needed to accelerate our rapid growth and take advantage of the many opportunities that continue to come our way.”
“The nDreams team continue to impress with how far they are pushing VR,” says Paul Schempp from Aonic. “Seeing their plans and visions for the future blew us away, and we are excited to join them on their incredible journey.” Aonic Group joins founding investor, Mercia Asset Management, as minority investors in nDreams.
In addition to developing its own VR videogames, the two new internal studios and the publishing arm, nDreams also set up an academy in 2021; designed to provide a talent pipeline for those currently learning about game development who are looking for employment opportunities.
Currently consisting of 130 people with plans to grow to 175 by the end of 2022, nDreams says it has “its strongest line-up of future projects already in development” which includes titles for PlayStation VR2. When details of those arrive gmw3 will let you know.
A major challenge in shipping consumer AR glasses is the input method. A traditional controller, such as those used with many VR devices, would not be practical for glasses you want to wear out and about on the street. Similarly, while voice recognition is now a mature technology, people tend to not want to give potentially private commands out loud in front of strangers.
A brain computer interface (BCI) could one day allow users to control their glasses, and even type words and sentences, by just thinking.
NextMind is a French startup which released a a $400 developer kit two years ago, a headband for brain input. Its competitors include Neurosity.
This isn’t Snap’s first core tech acquisition for its AR glasses ambitions. In May it acquired WaveOptics, its supplier of the transparent optical waveguides and accompanying projectors in the Spectacles developer kit.
Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta began its own BCI research project in 2017, with the stated goal of “a system capable of typing 100 words-per-minute straight from your brain”. But in July 2021 the company announced it was cancelling this project to work on wrist-mounted devices to read signals passing from the brain to the hands instead.
A Snap spokesperson apparently told The Verge the NextMind acquisition is a long-term research bet, with no specific technology yet intended to ship in products.
The developers behind photogrammetry-based puzzle game Puzzling Places revealed a new plan for future DLC packs, split into monthly and premium packs.
Since launch, Puzzling Places has received a few DLC releases with new puzzles that expand the selection from the base game. There was the Mars Desert Research Station pack in October, alongside two variety packs, the most recent of which launched last month and included “cultural heritage objects from India, England, Nepal, and Poland.”
However, the Puzzling Places developers say that the overwhelmingly feedback they’ve received is simply that players want more and more puzzles. As an answer to this, the devs are introducing a new DLC structure.
Monthly Puzzle Packs will release — you guessed it — once a month, featuring 6 puzzles per pack for $5 USD, with some puzzles limited to 200 pieces and others 400, depending on the scan quality. These will be variety packs featuring “a wide range of puzzles” that may or may not be thematic, with simple audio soundscape templates (such as city noises, natural ambient sound, mechanical sounds etc) that are re-used each month where appropriate.
This will allow the team to release DLC more frequently, while also focusing on other DLC packs that “push the boundaries of Puzzling Places.”
These Premium Puzzle Packs will release roughly every 2-3 months, featuring ~4 puzzles per pack for $5 USD, all with a 400 max piece limit. Premium Packs will be “centered around a main theme or location, with storytelling being a central focus” and will include premium audio with custom soundscapes specific to each region or puzzle.
Every puzzle released so far for the game since launch will be marked and considered a “premium” puzzle going forward, as they include custom soundscapes and a max 400 piece option.
april 20
no Impostors allowed
GDC (@TenderClaws) 
